8/14/2022 football Edit

Indiana wideouts making their mark with help of new WRs coach Adam Henry

Mason Williams • TheHoosier

Senior Writer

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There is no way to dance around it: Indiana's offensive production in 2021 was horrible.

Although injuries and series of unfortunate events led for some things to be out of their control, IU scored just 17.3 points/game last season. That ranked 123rd out of 130 FBS teams from 2021. Four different starting quarterbacks totaled just nine passing touchdowns, completed 51 percent of their passes, and did not have a single QB eclipse 1,000 yards through the air.

Of course, the numbers never tell the whole story. When a team goes 2-10 after being touted among the nation's up-and-comers throughout the entire offseason leading up to it, there's more than likely more than just one story as to why those expectations never materialized.

Either way, head coach Tom Allen knows that his program can't endure a repeat performance in 2022. So, he made some changes to try and ensure that.

Not only is nearly the entire offensive personnel completely revamped from top to bottom, but so too is nearly all of the coaching staff. Amongst the changes, however, perhaps no one single hire has a chance to make a bigger impact than new wide receivers coach Adam Henry.

Henry heads into his 26th season of coaching this fall, and has spent time at both the college and professional level. Allen poached Henry from the Dallas Cowboys staff this past March, where he was responsible in-part for the superstar emergence of CeeDee Lamb and continued production of Amari Cooper. During his most recent college stint, he coached Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry at LSU. Plain and simple, he knows what he's doing.

Henry has his hands full at Indiana as both the wide receivers coach and serving the duties of co-offensive coordinator alongside Walt Bell. Now, with some time under his belt to adjust and settle in, he and Allen both are adjusting nicely to the change.

"The room is really -- it looks a lot different," Allen said of the wide receivers as he met with the media Friday following the team's first fall scrimmage. "There's several new faces, and it's a group that continues to elevate. There's quite a few guys there, we're gonna take a bunch of them, we need all of them, and everybody's gotta step up and do their part."

Of those new faces, many are expected to come in and contribute right away. One of the biggest storylines this fall has been the conversion of former-QB Donaven McCulley to WR, one that has seemed to be fruitful so far. D.J. Matthews returns from an ACL injury that sidelined him just five games into the 2021 season, and transfers Emery Simmons, Cam Camper and Andison Coby have all received high praise for their performance so far from their staff and fellow teammates.

"Donaven (McCulley) can be special. It's a pretty good consensus from everyone who's watched him in practice,” Allen said. “… He's a big presence. And just just as a receiver catching the ball, but once he catches it, as a runner.

“Cam Camper is going to be special. Addison Coby is going to continue to make plays."

Returning as well are the likes of Javon Swinton and Malachi Holt-Bennett from a season ago, as well as highly-regarded freshmen Omar Cooper Jr. and Jacquez Smith who come in looking to make a splash from day one.

Although there isn't an abundance of game experience from years past amongst them, it's made up for in opportunity. So, no matter who the quarterback that is delivering them the ball is, there's no doubt that Henry has quite a talented selection of playmakers at his disposal who are chomping at the bit to play ball.

In fact, reshaping the stable of offensive weapons is all apart of Allen's plan to eliminate the need for constant multiple-play drives, a key factor in Indiana's offensive woes from last season. It's clear in speaking with Allen that "chunk" plays are of utmost importance this year.

"We just wanted to be able to move the football efficiently, get the ball in the end zone and we have emphasized creating more explosive plays," Allen said about the scrimmage. "Obviously it's a tough dynamic, because we are trying to not allow those on defense, which is the natural tension you have there. Trying to be able to create those and not have to drive 10, 11, 12-play drives to get down the field. That was the emphasis and we had several of those today, that was good."

However, Allen says that it's more than just the on-field production that he's seen positive improvement in. He credits Henry for using his extensive background to instill a mentality and willingness to be on the field at all times, even in situations where they might not prefer to play in.

"Coach Henry has done a phenomenal guy of getting those guys of the right mindset to play special teams," Allen said. "He brings that to us from the NFL, which, you don't play on special teams as a receiver, you're probably not gonna make it unless you're just that -- the guy. That's something coach Henry has brought to us, and those guys have bought into that, and I think it's huge for our whole team."

So, if Indiana fulfills their aspirations of a complete 180-degree turnaround on offense, you can expect that Henry's work will be all over it. Whether it comes in the form of offensive outbursts from the wideout group, game-changing or game-saving plays from the special teams unit, or a general uptick in offensive production, one could assume that the role Henry plays in it would be vital.

After all, he's experienced success at nearly every stop in his playing and coaching journey so far. Surely, he hopes to add Indiana to that list starting this fall.